Connecting to a bank account

QuickBooks Online has a range of features that streamline your accounting and bookkeeping processes. Connecting your bank account to your QuickBooks Online account is a useful function that allows you to track purchases, withdrawals, funds transfers and deposits accurately and efficiently. You have the option to connect cheque and savings accounts, as well as credit card accounts – as long as they are accessible through your bank’s online banking.

Our step-by-step overview will help you set up this function in no time.

Connect Your Bank Accounts to QuickBooks Online:

Choose Transactions > Banking from the left-hand-side navigation bar

Click Add Account in the top right-hand corner

Enter the name of your financial institution

Click the magnifying glass to Find

Alternatively, if your bank is listed, click on the institution’s name. If your bank requires extra information, enter this in the appropriate fields and click Log In. This could occur if you use a bank token

Enter your online banking credentials that you have set up with your bank. These details will be the same as your normal bank login. For example, for Westpac Bank customers, enter your Customer ID

Enter your Password and click Log In

It may take a few minutes to process, so do not hit the back button. Once complete, it will take you to your Add an account window.

Choose the bank account you want to connect. You do not have to choose all – just the accounts you wish to add to your QuickBooks Online account.

You can choose the date range you would like to bring into the file up to 90 days. Click on the days required. You can choose 0, 7, 30 or a maximum of 90 days

Tick the Account you would like to connect to your QuickBooks Online file. Please note the left-hand-side accounts are the bank accounts held with your banking institution

Click on the drop-down menu to choose the bank account you have set up in QuickBooks Online Chart of Accounts. Make sure this is set up prior to this stage. Click Connect at the bottom right-hand side. The connection will take a few minutes after this initial setup. QuickBooks Online works magically behind the scenes and connects the bank account chosen from your financial institution to your bank account in QuickBooks Online

When it is finished connecting, click “I’m done. Let’s go!” at the bottom right-hand corner

After your download finishes, go back into Transactions >Banking from the left-hand-side navigation bar (image 1). Click the New Transactions tab to see the downloads

Handy Hints and Troubleshooting

If your bank doesn’t appear as an option to select:

When you enter your bank name and click Find, you may get the message Sorry! We can’t find your bank

Click Request to add my bank

Enter the bank’s website URL, the bank name and your email into the fields provided

Click Submit

Note: We can’t tell you if or when a bank may be added to our list because this is a decision between Intuit and the financial institution. You will be contacted if the bank decides to become part of our supported financial institutions.

Common Errors When Connecting an Account

If you are trying to connect your bank or credit card account in QuickBooks Online Banking and receive the error 103 or 107, it is possible that you have selected the wrong financial institution from the list when multiple results are displayed. Try connecting again using the steps below:

Go to Transactions > Banking

Click Add account

In the search field, enter the full name of the bank you are trying to connect to or enter the bank’s URL. For example: http://www.westpac.com.au

If multiple results are displayed, click on the bank name in the list

On the next screen, verify that the URL for the bank that is displayed under the name is the correct URL that you use when signing into your online banking account. If not, click Go back and select the next name in the list. Repeat this process until you find the correct URL listed under the bank name

Enter your user ID and password

Click Log In

Changing the QuickBooks Online Account or Switching the Bank Connection

If you’ve connected the wrong account to online banking, you can change the QuickBooks Online details. Please note that disconnecting the account won’t automatically remove the previously accepted transactions from the register, and when you reconnect to the correct account only the last 90 days of data will download.

If you have transactions downloaded into the wrong account from earlier than the 90 days, we suggest you edit them and switch them to the correct bank or credit card account (register) before performing a “mass-undo”.

To switch to the correct account of the transaction:

Choose Transactions > Chart of Accounts

Click Account History in the row of the account with the unwanted transactions

Click to highlight the unwanted transaction and then click Edit

Change the bank account in the bank field to the correct QuickBooks Online Account

Click Save

Repeat this procedure for each transaction

If you have accepted transactions to the wrong register and the transactions are within 90 days, you can undo them:

Choose Transactions > Banking

Select the account you wish to undo and click In QuickBooks (middle tab)

Click the check box at the top left above the transactions to mark all transactions

Under batch actions, select Undo selected

The Undo tool won’t un-add or un-match any transactions that have been edited or the opening balance equity transaction on the register. To remove these transactions:

Choose Transactions > Chart of Account

In the row of the account with the unwanted transactions, click Account History

Click to highlight the unwanted transaction and then click Delete

Click Yes to confirm

You’ll need to repeat this procedure for each transaction. There’s no mass undo option when deleting from the register

Disconnect the account

Reconnect to the correct QuickBooks Online account

From the Chart of Accounts, select the bank account required to be disconnect from the drop-down menu. Click Edit and uncheck the box Disconnect this account on Save. This will disconnect all connections to the bank

Once your bank accounts have been added, you can then process transactions directly into your file, saving you time and keeping your account up to date with the correct details.

Information may be abridged and therefore incomplete. This document/information does not constitute, and should not be considered a substitute for, legal or financial advice. Each financial situation is different, the advice provided is intended to be general. Please contact your financial or legal advisors for information specific to your situation.